I am not talking about having an uncontrollable binge for food pleasure, I think we have all done that.

I am talking rip roaring hunger. I am a fast cycler, every three days
actually, you can set your watch to it. When I am in my manic phase,
I will suddenly get super hungry, and normal eating paterns will not help
at all. I will have supper, then an hour later I am ready for supper again
and IF I don't eat it, I will often get sick to my stomach.

This goes away when the manic does, but I noticed it comes and goes in
various degrees, sometimes it's controlable and other times not.

This is really hard, because I am trying to lose weight, and have been doing great, lost 70 lbs so far, but this trips me up, its agony. I am a firm believer that it was my bipolar hungers that got me in weight trouble in the first place.

The lith helps allot with this, but as everyone knows, its only a mask, the problem doesn't go away it only deadens it a bit, kind of like novacane.

Do you get extra hungry when you go Manic? How do you handle it?

YOu would think being super energized would burn off the extra calories, it doesn't..

I donít get the hungers but I do get an unquenchable thirst. I donít know why that its, but I speculate -- that there is so much brain activity going on, that a whole bunch of oxygen is needed up there to keep the activity going. Henceforth, the body (brain) desperately needs as much water as it can get in order to make more oxygen. It sound crazy, and probable is, but like I said -- it is only my speculation. Maybe your body craves food for the same reason. You take in more oxygen while eating. .

Immediately after my mania-water-rush I start downward, accompanied with uncontrollable yawning. I think that is because the excessive activity has stopped, and there is now a depletion of oxygen and the yawning is the bodyís way of attempting to get more oxygen to the brain. Again, it is just my speculation. I would love to here from someone who really knows the answers to these questions.

I used to take lithium, 1200mg. Before I got up to the 1200 I too had the light rapid cycling. But once up to 1200 that stopped. Could you possible need a higher dose? Good luck. karen